Nagaland held a workshop on cybersecurity frameworks for state data, focusing on data protection and digital governance.
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DIMAPUR — A one-day state consultative workshop on "Strengthening cybersecurity frameworks for state data" was held at the Directorate of Information Technology and Communication in Kohima on Wednesday.
Commissioner and Secretary for Information Technology and Communication (IT&C) and State Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) Arenla Jamir, in her keynote address, stated that Nagaland has made significant progress in digital governance, though there is still much ground to cover.
According to a DIPR report, she pointed out that initiatives like the Chief Minister’s Health Insurance Scheme (CMHIS), Chief Minister’s Scholarship, Personnel Information Management System (PIMS), and e-Treasury have transformed governance and service delivery across districts.
She noted that while digital transformation has improved service delivery and administrative efficiency, it has also increased the risks associated with protecting sensitive data. She added that cybersecurity is no longer the sole responsibility of the IT department but a shared responsibility requiring awareness, preparedness, and commitment from all government offices and employees handling digital information.
Jamir highlighted that during the fifth National Conference of Chief Secretaries, held in December 2025, the prime minister directed every state to assess its cybersecurity readiness and contribute to the development of a national law. As a follow-up, stage one and stage two national consultative workshops with IT secretaries from 36 states have already been conducted. She stated that suggestions from the stage three state-level workshop would help formulate recommendations to be submitted to the union ministry.
Since the outcome of this workshop would directly contribute to framing a national policy to be tabled in August 2026, she encouraged all participants to engage actively in discussions and provide honest feedback based on ground realities.
Senior Technical Director and State Informatics Officer of National Informatics Centre (NIC), Nagaland, I Lanusungkum Aier, shared experiences regarding the district information system. He stated that only necessary information should be collected from beneficiaries with their consent and that department data must match existing records for easy analysis.
On cybersecurity, Aier cautioned that while people are beginning to use artificial intelligence (AI) to make life easier, the information available might not always be correct. He stated that accurate data is essential for AI to perform precise analysis, noting that AI can be double-edged, as it can also aid hackers in obtaining information. He called for better collaboration and data sharing among departments to solve common issues.
Welcoming the gathering, Director of IT&C and Deputy CISO Sabou Yashu stated that securing data is becoming increasingly critical. He noted that the national summit suggested organising state-level workshops with various stakeholders to build a framework to protect digital data.
Deputy General Manager of National e-Governance Division (NeGD) under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology Pooja Kandpal briefed the participants virtually on the national overview, while Deputy Director of IT&C Daniel Krocha presented the core accountability mandates.
The workshop was attended by representatives from various government departments, administration, technical sectors, and law enforcement agencies.